Death By Chocolate
by rangeman girl
Summary: A Challenge from another group. Lester, Stephanie and Chocolate on a Stakeout. Smut, language and angst warning.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: So I said that I wasn't going to write any FF for awhile, but I have to take a break from this damn original. It's killing me slowly, LOL. So for lack of inspiration, I was looking back over some of the past challenges, and Lisa's challenge of 'Lester, Stephanie and Chocolate on a Stakeout' spoke to me. Since Lester is my favorite subject as of late, here we are. Enjoy.

Death By Chocolate

By: A. Cosentino

I cut my eyes at her for the 10th time in as many minutes. She squirmed in the seat, pulling one of her legs up under her and heaving a sigh. Surveillance blows. Well usually. But I had heard many tales about surveillance with Steph; you could never be sure what would happen.

I shifted slightly and pulled up the night vision scope, focusing on the dilapidated row house we were watching. Steph fidgeted again and sighed. I don't know Stephanie that well. Everyone knows that she is Ranger's responsibility and sometimes Tank's. I had worked with her once before on a 'redecorating' job, and I genuinely liked her. She was a trip. Ranger was closed lipped about her. Never said a word. Tank on the other hand was a gossiping schoolgirl, so all of us felt as if we knew her.

It was the luck of the draw that I ended up here with her. Ranger was supposed to be here, but at the last second there had been a call on Ramon Ramirez. He was a scumbag wanted for attempted murder that Ranger had a boner for. Ramirez had almost beaten one of our CI's, a 'ho named Polly, to death. Polly had been around for years and was a friend of RangeMan. Messing with friends of RangeMan was never a smart move.

So here I am. Sitting next to Stephanie on Carlson Street, staking out Lenny Henderson, FTA on possession with intent and resisting arrest. I bet the jackass wouldn't even put up a fight. That was a shame. I was looking to have some fun.

I looked over at her again, taking in the litter strewn around her seat. Three tastycake wrappers, two empty coffee cups and she was currently digging in her purse for God knows what. I tried to imagine Ranger sitting here. Lord, she would drive him nuts. Ranger is the epitome of neatness and order. Looking at her mess just made me grin.

"What are you looking for?" I asked. She straightened up and looked over at me, her bright blue eyes catching the light from the streetlamp. She was hot, there was no doubting that and I could see why she was Ranger's responsibility only. Had she been mine, I would have been pretty damn hesitant to let her out of my sight.

"Something to eat," she grumbled and began digging in her purse again. Her curly hair fell down over her shoulder, blocking her face partially from my view.

"You're still hungry?" I looked down at her mess again and smiled. She shot me a glare that probably would have made a lesser man cringe.

"I didn't have any dinner," she grumbled and continued digging. "What time is it?" she asked suddenly. I glanced at my watch.

"2336."

"In normal people time?"

Normal people time? I smiled full on. "11:36."

"Thank you. How much longer are we going to sit here and wait for this bum?"

"Until he shows up."

"Sheesh," she said under her breath and reached deep into the giant black purse. "Ah Ha!" she announced triumphantly, pulling out a chocolate Hershey bar.

I watched as she opened the chocolate bar and offered me some. I declined and she shrugged, taking a bite out of the candy bar. I watched amazement as she transformed before of my eyes. Her eyes glazed over and she licked her lips, a soft moan of pleasure escaped her as she sank back into the seat of the Explorer. She closed her eyes and moaned again.

All that over a chocolate bar. Good God.

I made a mental note to buy stock in Hershey first thing tomorrow morning.

"That was just what I needed," she breathed, taking another nibble. I swallowed hard and looked out the window. I felt a twitch in my crotch as 'Big Papi' stood up and took notice. I shifted in the seat a little. "Are you sure you don't want any of this?" she asked offering me the chocolate bar again.

I cleared my throat before answering. "Uh, no thanks."

"You don't know what you're missing," she said waving it toward me. I could only imagine what I was missing given the display I had just witnessed. I smiled a tight smile and brought the night vision scope back up in an attempt to distract myself. This is work. This is Ranger's woman. Ranger's woman. I chanted this over and over in my head but my other head didn't seem to take notice.

"So are you a weirdo like Ranger?" she asked suddenly. I looked over at her in surprise.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that whole the body is a temple thing? Do you eat chocolate? I'm pretty sure that it should be in a food group all of it's own. I mean it's only the best thing on earth," she said looking at me with wide eyes, and licking a bit of chocolate off her thumb.

I grinned and thought of a hundred things sexually suggestive things I could say at that moment, but I quenched the urge. "No not so much."

"But you do eat chocolate?"

"Sometimes. If were talking candy, I prefer Skittles."

"Skittles are yummy too," she agreed and took another bite of chocolate. I couldn't seem to tear my eyes from her. She moaned again and licked her lips. My eyes were riveted on a small smudge of chocolate in the corner of her mouth. The image of leaning over and licking it off of her popped into my head. Damn. Shit. I have to think of something else.

"I thought you were probably into bark and twigs like Ranger," she teased, smiling at me brightly.

"I only eat bark and twigs when necessary."

"That's good to know," she laughed. Her laugh was almost magical and I caught myself staring at the small smudge again.

"Uh, you have a little something," I said and then reached out before I thought better of it and wiped it off the corner of her lip.

"Mmm, thanks. Did you get it?" she asked sitting up and pulling down the visor and checking herself in the vanity mirror.

"Yeah." Fuck. That was dumb. Stupid. This is RANGER'S woman. Christ. 'Big Papi' was at full attention now, and I let out a deep breath. I cut my eyes at her as she closed the visor and sat back.

"So tell me all about yourself," she said turning sideways in the seat and staring directly at me. I looked at her and blinked.

"What?"

"Tell me all about you."

"Like what?"

"Do you have a girlfriend? What do you like to do besides getting arrested and getting shot," she said teasingly, referring to our first conversation.

I smiled and sat back in the seat, willing my cock to just settle down. I was thinking about baseball, midgets, anything other than her sitting next to me looking good enough to lick. Lick chocolate off of. Oh crap.

"I don't have a girlfriend."

"Wow, really?"

"I'm what you would call an equal opportunity guy. I don't like to limit myself."

"Oh so the rumors are true? You're a player."

I grinned and shrugged. "Don't hate the player baby, hate the game."

She laughed again and smiled a smile that just raised my temp a few more notches. "I've met guys like you before."

"I doubt that," I said meeting her gaze head on. She looked at me and blinked a few times. "I'm one of a kind. I really am something special." I grinned at her and winked.

"Most guys think they are," she said with a nervous laugh. I noticed a blush creep up her cheeks, making her even more adorable.

"Wanna find out?" I asked with a predatory grin. God knows I would show her just how special I could be. I could rock her world.

"Oh boy," she said fanning herself. "I'll pass."

"To bad," I shrugged. "I could make it worth your while. Show you a few things with that chocolate bar."

"Oh good God." Her cheeks became a crimson color and I laughed. It was good to know that I still had it.

"So what about you?" I asked, continuing to stare at her.

"What about me?"

"Do you have a boyfriend?" I knew about her and the cop, but I also thought there was something going on with her and Ranger. It had never been said, but everyone on the street knew that she had Ranger's stamp on her.

"Not really."

"Ah, an equal opportunity girl huh?"

She laughed again and took another nibble off of her chocolate bar. "No, I guess you could say I have some commitment problems."

"Don't we all."

"Yeah." She fell silent as if lost in thought. I didn't push the issue. "Have you known Ranger a long time?" she asked after a long moment.

"Yeah."

"Were you in the Ranger's together?"

"No."

"Oh."

"You seem surprised."

"I just thought that you all were in the military with each other."

It was true the RangeMan only hired ex-military, mostly Special Forces. I was no different. "I was a SEAL."

"So how did you guys meet?"

I let out a long sigh. These were things that I hadn't thought about in years. My mind traveled back to Kuwait. I would have died in that godforsaken shit hole. It was bad business. We were to take out the Emissary and get out. Simple enough. We met up with some other Black Ops to get the job done. Our initial Intel had been wrong, and because of that I lost my swim buddy and took four hits. The fucking Ranger's had to pull us out of there. More specifically, Ranger pulled me out.

"I'm sorry. It's probably some stuff that you can't talk about," she said finally. I blinked a few times and glanced over at her.

"He saved my life. We got sent into a situation that we had no chance in hell of getting out of. Ranger pulled me out." I didn't go into it anymore than that. Truth was I had worked long and hard to forget that shit.

"Wow."

"Yeah." She let the subject drop and for that I was grateful.

"Have you been with RangeMan a long time?"

I grinned. "Yeah. I've been with RangeMan for almost nine years." I pulled the scope up and check the row house again. Still no activity. I wanted the skip to show up so we could get this show on the road, and I could get out of this SUV. If I stayed in here to long, the chance that I would lick Stephanie was increasing by the moment.

I chanced a look at her again and saw that she had another smudge of chocolate on her lower lip. She finished the candy bar and crinkled up the paper, shoving it in her purse. She smiled at me and sat back in the seat, the smudge still there.

"You've got," I said motioning toward her lip.

"Oh," she wiped the corner over her mouth with her finger, but the smudge still remained. I leaned over the consol closer to her.

"I'll get it." I heard her breath quicken and her scent invaded my senses at the closeness of her. My lips were a breath away from hers, I slowly kissed her, pulling her lower lip between my teeth and sucking, keeping my gaze fixed on hers.

A soft whimper escaped her as I moved my tongue across her bottom lip, enjoying the taste of her mingled with the chocolate. 'Big Papi' was primed and ready for action at this point, and I wondered for a split second just how far back this seat could go. I moved up slightly, sinking my tongue between her lips. She made that sexy whimper again and I brought up my left hand, grazing the outside of her breast on the way to her neck. I threaded my fingers up through her hair at the base of her skull, massaging her scalp.

She moaned again and melted against me, pressing her breasts against my chest. I knew at that moment I could have her if I just pressed a little further. I untangled my fingers from the soft tresses of her hair and traveled back down her side. Her tongue mingled with mine, causing my heart rate to jump. I've been with a lot of women, probably more than my fair share, and I couldn't remember a single one that I had ever wanted as bad as I wanted her at that moment.

I slid my hand up under her loose t-shirt and caressed the soft skin just above her jeans. I popped the snap and slid my fingers inside, brushing against the lacy band of her panties. Stephanie ran her fingers up and locked them in my hair, pulling my mouth against hers harder. She arched up against my hand as I slipped past her panties and felt her wetness.

I thought I could stop this at any time, but feeling how hot she was sent that notion right out the window. I broke the kiss and rested my forehead against hers. Her breathing was irregular and coming in short gasps. I slowly circled her clit with my finger, causing her to moan again. I wanted her. Fuck Ranger. Why should he have all the fun?

My cell phone chirped suddenly, causing her to jump, breaking the spell that had descended upon the SUV.

"Shit," I swore under my breath, pulling my hand out of her jeans and settling back into the drivers seat. I pulled my cell off of my belt and flipped it open. "Yo."

"I'll be there in 10," Ranger said. I looked over at Stephanie in the seat next to me. She looked thoroughly disheveled, her lips were slightly swollen and pink, her hair tumbled around her shoulders and her blue eyes were slightly glazed over.

"You catch Ramirez?"

"Affirmative. See you in 10," he said and disconnected. I snapped the phone shut. Stephanie was snapping her jeans and attempting to straighten herself.

"Ranger will be here in 10," I sighed, regret tingeing my voice.

"Good," she replied looking over at me. I raised my eyebrow and grinned slightly. "I know how to deal with him."

"I have a feeling that you know how to deal with me too."

She looked at me with wide eyes. "I don't know what happened. That was a mistake."

I smiled a slow smile. "Everything happens for a reason."

She cleared her throat and ran her fingers through her hair. "Well it won't happen again."

I laughed a full laugh. "It can happen anytime you want it beautiful. Just say the word. I promise it won't be something you would forget. You won't even remember who Ranger is afterwards."

Stephanie got quiet and stared out of the window. I knew how my touch had affected her, and honestly it had affected me too. I could still taste her on my tongue and that just served to put me in a bad position. I had a raging hard on, Stephanie had locked down on me and Ranger was going to show up in less than five minutes.

I let out a long breath. Tension filled the SUV. "Listen Stephanie," I started. She held up her hand and cut me off.

"No. This is the last thing I need right now. My life is screwed up enough. I don't need to complicate it anymore than it already is."

I nodded and saw headlights pull up behind us. Ranger flashed the headlights one time as he parked behind me. Stephanie grabbed her things, shoving her garbage in her purse. She gave me a look as she opened the SUV door. She stared at me for a moment, and I met her gaze. I could see the thoughts running through her head. She was thinking about just how good it could be. It was written all over her face.

"Another time, another place," I said. She smiled at me and shut the door. I watched in the rearview mirror as she hopped into the black Expedition. I rolled over the engine and pulled away, taking a block and heading back toward Haywood.

'Big Papi' was still throbbing in my pants and the image and feel of her was singed into my brain. I knew I couldn't have her, but I always did want things I couldn't have. I took a deep breath, willing my enormous hard on to go away, but he just wasn't listening.

I pulled into the garage on Haywood and killed the engine. I sat there for a long moment thinking about the night's events. Well at least I would have spank material for a month, I thought as I hopped out of the SUV and started toward the elevator. I knew that I wasn't mistaken in how she responded to me. She wanted me, and God knows that I wanted her. My mind began to formulate a plan. I could make this happen. I shook my head as I climbed into the elevator. This was crazy, but the seed had been planted. I tried to rid myself of the image of her sitting there with that damn chocolate bar. Christ it was killing me. I couldn't shake it. I hit the button for the fourth floor.

Yep, it was going to be a long night, and I had Stephanie Plum to thank for that.


	2. Chapter 2

Chocolate part 2

Chocolate part 2.

By: A. Cosentino

Smut/Angst warning

Steph POV

"Harder, faster," I panted, squeezing my legs tight around his trim hips, gripping him inside of me. I could feel his hot breath against my neck, his calloused hands traveling over my rib cage. I rocked my hips against his, begging for more, which he was only too happy to give.

"_Stephanie." I heard and felt him groan against my neck. I raked my fingernails down his chiseled back, grinding my teeth at the unbearable pleasure swirling in my lower stomach, shooting up my spine. It was coming like a freight train and I couldn't stop it. Hell, I didn't want to. It was exactly what I needed. _

"Oh God Santos!" I screamed, jarring myself awake just as the tremors of a huge orgasm swept through me. Damp curls of my hair were plastered to my face; sweat drenching my whole body as the aftershocks slid through me. I collapsed back onto the bed, trembling. And alone.

This wasn't the first time in the past two weeks that this particular dream had occurred. Ever since that ill-fated night that I did surveillance with Santos and allowed things to get a little out of control, it seemed to be all I could think about. He was the last thing I needed in my life. God knows it's complicated enough without throwing him into the mix.

But I couldn't shake him.

I had avoided him and RangeMan like the plague. After the close call, I had feigned sick with Ranger who had taken me home. I don't think he really bought the whole sick thing, as a matter of fact I knew he didn't, but he obviously wasn't going to question it. It was an action that was very un-Ranger like, but not something I wanted to delve into deeper. Every time he looks at me I can see it in his eyes. He knows. How he knows, I have no idea. Maybe there was some sliver of truth to all the jokes we've made over the years about Ranger knowing everything.

Santos on the other hand had been popping up in the strangest places. Pino's. The Bonds office. The Tasty Pastry. The Quiky Mart. I'm not saying that he's stalking me, because my stalkers are never that hot, but it was unusual. I thought that maybe I just hadn't noticed him before. Yeah. That's it. Yeah right. Even I can't believe that one. A woman can't help but notice if Santos is within a mile radius.

Chicks dig him.

I let out a ragged sigh and hoisted myself off the bed, stripping my t-shirt as I strode to the bathroom. A hot shower was all I needed and I would be back to my old self. Denial is a beautiful thing. I glanced at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. My cheeks were flushed and my eyes seemed bright. Damn, if he could do that in my dreams, imagine how damn good it could be in the flesh?

"Crap," I grumbled, attempting to put the erotic thoughts out of my head. I cranked up the shower to scorching and climbed inside. I hopped out of the shower a short time later and tugged on a pair of faded jeans, a black scoop necked t-shirt and a pair of low-heeled black boots. After tackling my hair and taming it into submission, I tossed on a couple coats of mascara, a little Kiss me Red lipstick, dropped a carrot into Rex's cage and I was out the door.

I hopped into my crappy olive green 1992 Nissan Sentra, ground the transmission into first and motored toward the bonds office. I stopped off at The Tasty Pastry thinking that a doughnut was in order after my ordeal earlier and coasted into a parking space in the front. I glanced over at the black Ford Expedition parked in the lot and swallowed hard.

It can't be. Sheesh. Every black SUV you see isn't him, I told myself as I hopped out and strode through the door. A bell dinged my arrival and my gaze shot to the left.

Holy shit.

Santos.

Dressed in a pair of desert camo pants, black t-shirt with a full utility belt, and black Bates boots he looked good enough to lick, not to mention a little out of place. I felt a flush settle over me as his gaze raked over my body, a grin quirking up the side of his mouth, a dimple appearing in his left cheek. His dark eyes were assessing as they locked with mine. I swallowed hard and approached the counter. The teenage girl behind the counter had goo goo eyes for him, not that I could blame her. I was struggling myself.

"What can I get you?" she asked, not taking her eyes off of Santos. I felt rather than heard him approach.

"A dozen Boston Creams," I managed to stutter. It was defiantly a dozen-doughnut kind of morning.

"Good morning Steph," he said in a low voice. I turned to my left and saw he was within two feet of me. His well-defined pectoral muscles were right at my eye level. I glanced up quickly.

"Good morning Lester." I turned back toward the counter. The girl was taking forever to get my doughnuts, her eyes seemingly glued to him. His scent wafted toward me. It was the same as before, clean, woodsy, and now mixed with sugar, a lethal combination.

"On your way to the office?" he asked, leaning nonchalantly against the pastry case, a cup of coffee balanced in his large hand.

"Yep," I answered quickly, glancing in his direction. He smiled at me, perfectly straight white teeth gleaming against his olive complexion and I felt my heart do a little pitter-patter. "This is three times this week. Doesn't Ranger have a rule about you guys eating junk food?" My sad little attempt at playing it cool.

He threw back his head and laughed a full laugh. My eyes traveled down his tan throat and back to his perfectly sculpted chest. "Despite what you might think," he said leaning closer to me, "Ranger doesn't know everything." The innuendo wasn't lost on me. Nope. No grass growing here, and I felt my cheeks burn.

"Um," I stumbled. Shit. I glanced as the girl put my doughnuts up onto the counter, her gaze still locked on Santos in that ga ga way. I reached into my pocket and threw a ten on the counter. "Keep the change," I said grabbing up the doughnut box and walking toward the door. He followed. I knew he would. I sat the doughnuts in my passenger seat and stood next to the car. "I really need to go," I said pulling out my keys.

"Sure," he said smiling, cocking his head slightly and assessing me.

He made me nervous. He wasn't Ranger. I know how to deal with Ranger. Santos? Well he's a whole other animal. I took a deep breath. "Look Lester, I'm not sure what kind of game your trying to play here, but I need you to understand that I'm not playing. My life is screwed up enough. I don't need this."

He leaned close, placing his hand on the top of my car, effectively trapping me between him and my car door. "So you said," he said quietly, his gaze traveling down to the low neckline of my top. "I'm not playing a game Stephanie. I just want to make sure that you understand that if you want it, I can make it happen." His eyes traveled back up to lock with mine.

Sweet Jesus. "I, uh, that's really nice of you to offer, but I don't think that's suck a good idea."

"Suck?" he said raising his eyebrow.

Shit. "Such. Such a good idea." I swallowed hard.

"You know the other night was just a prelude," he moved his hand up and trailed his finger gently under the collar of my shirt. I felt my breath quicken and my nipples grow hard. "I could make worth your while."

I had no doubt of that what so ever. None. Nada. Zilch. Zippo. Oh it would be good. That's for damn sure. "Wait. Wait," I said reaching out and placing my hand against his rock hard chest, realizing that wasn't a very good idea I jerked it back. "Aren't you the least bit worried about Ranger?"

"Why? You said yourself there wasn't anything between you? You said you were just friends."

I swallowed hard again. "I lied."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

"So your with Ranger?"

"Not exactly."

"Clarify."

"Excuse me?"

"Clarify."

How could I explain something that I didn't know how to explain? "It's complicated."

"Usually is."

"Let's just leave it at that."

Santos pulled away and looked down at me. "I'm not trying to rock the boat. So I'm just going to lay this on the table. I want you. You want me, even if you don't want to admit it. All I'm saying is give me the word, beautiful. You won't be sorry."

I felt my breath catch in my throat. It didn't get any plainer than that. "What….what ……" I stammered.

"Leave Ranger to me if that's what your worried about. I've taken an ass beating from him for less. I lived through that I'll make it through this."

"Brave statement," I snorted.

"He was a Ranger, sweetie. You're forgetting, I was a SEAL," he winked at me and pulled out his business card. "This has my numbers on it. My personal cell is on the back." He leaned in, his lips a breath from mine. "Don't loose it," he didn't kiss me but pulled away and walked across the parking lot.

I remained leaning against my car, my knees threatening to buckle. I took a few deep breaths and managed to get into my car and get the hell out of there. I wolfed down three doughnuts on the way to the bonds office. My over active hormones were in overdrive, and the memory of Santos being so fresh in my mind didn't help matters any. I parked on the curb in front of the office behind Ranger's black Cayenne. Great. Just what I need, I thought as I slowly got out of the car, balancing the box of doughnuts and my purse.

A confrontation with the man in black was not high on my wish list.

I strolled through the front door. Ranger stood before Connie's desk, in full SWAT gear. He turned his head and his dark eyes locked on me.

"Morning," I called just a little to cheerfully and sat the doughnuts on Connie's desk. Connie glanced at me in surprise at my cheeriness I suppose and took a doughnut from the box.

"You're awful damn chipper this morning," she said with a smile. Ranger continued to stare at me.

"Babe." He nodded his head in my direction. That was it. No lingering kiss on the forehead, no brushing of his body against mine.

"Ranger," I returned. He pinned me with his accusing gaze and I glanced toward Connie. "You have anything for me?"

"Just these two," she said handing me two files. She glanced at Ranger and back to me, questions in her eyes.

"Can I speak with you for a moment?" Ranger asked. I nodded and he motioned outside. I glanced at Connie who was watching the whole scene intently. I followed Ranger outside where he stepped into the alley.

"What's up?"

"Why don't you tell me?" he said folding his arms across his chest. It was a stance I had seen him take before, but never towards me. This is pissed off Ranger.

"What are you talking about?"

"You've been avoiding me."

I swallowed hard. That wasn't exactly true. I hadn't been avoiding Ranger per say, but Santos. How could I explain that I had the overwhelming urge to fuck one of his best friends? I couldn't. So I took the easy way out.

"I've been busy."

Ranger gazed down at me for a long moment. He moved, leaning in closer to me. "Have you recovered?"

I looked at him strangely. "Recovered from what?"

"Your sudden illness last week."

I bit my lower lip. "Yes, thanks for asking."

"Babe." I looked up at him expectantly. "You're the worst liar in the world."

"I'm not a liar," I said defensively.

"You've never lied to me before, so why the sudden change of heart?"

"I…I…." I let out a breath slowly, my mind racing. If I told Ranger the truth, Santos would be in traction. Regardless of his cockiness, I didn't doubt that Ranger could hurt him. Bad. I didn't want that. It wasn't like it was anything bad anyway right? It was a kiss. That's it. Ok so maybe there was a little groping, but nothing to serious. Right? Ranger continued to stare at me, and I fought the urge to squirm. "I just didn't feel like doing surveillance. You know how much I hate it."

Ranger raised his eyebrow and I saw the corner of his mouth twitch. A Ranger smile. "And you couldn't just tell me that?"

"Well, you know."

"In the future you're probably better off just coming clean. Don't lie to me."

I blinked a few times and swallowed hard. "Thanks for the advice," I said sarcastically. He reached up and trailed his fingertip down my cheek gently.

"Later babe," he said and walked away. I watched him for a moment and then hustled back into the bonds office. After fending off Connie's questions I managed to get back on the road. While my bank account was in serious need of the money from the two skips she'd given me, my mind wasn't into it. I kept thinking about Santos. And Ranger.

The more I thought about it, the angrier it made me. Ranger had played this game for years. He doesn't own me. I can date or in this case screw whomever I want. I've never been one for casual sex, but the thought of a naked Santos was enough to make a nun renege on her vow of chastity.

I thought about this as I drove aimlessly. Before I realized it I was in my parking lot, parked by the dumpster. I flipped the ignition switch and sat there listening to the ticking of the cooling engine. I let out a long sigh. Why did life have to be so complicated?

My gaze slid over to the business card lying on my seat. Damn. He was just to tempting. Before I lost my nerve I grabbed up the card, and quickly dialed it on my cell. It rang twice before he answered.

"Santos."

"Um, hi Lester. It's Stephanie," I managed to squeak out. The magnitude of what I was about to do hit me then and I almost hung up. Almost.

"Hey there gorgeous," he purred into the phone. I swallowed hard as his voice cascaded over me. "How may I be of service?"

The pornographic image that popped into my head when he said that caused my heart rate to jump. My nerve was quickly fading and I began to stammer. "Um, well, never mind," I said and quickly disconnected. I gently beat my forehead against the steering wheel. "Stupid, stupid, stupid."

I jumped when the cell phone rang in my lap.

I didn't even have to look at the screen to know who it was and I debated answering. But deciding I'm not a chicken shit out weighted the other possibility and I answered. "Hello?" I said in a false cheery voice.

"Just say the words Stephanie," Santos said, laughter edging into his voice.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"I'm more than happy to oblige, but you have to say the words."

My breath caught in my throat and my mouth was as dry as the Sahara. I tried to swallow. "And what words would those be?" I asked, in an attempt to sound catty, but my voice squeaked.

A low, sexy chuckle caused goose bumps to rise on my arms. "I'm pretty sure you know."

I let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding. "I'm not trying to make this complicated."

"Neither am I."

"This is a bad idea."

"You know you wanna."

How can you argue with the truth? "I don't do casual sex," I blurted out. He laughed again.

"Ok."

"But I don't really do relationships either."

"Good to know."

I bit my lower lip and questioned my sanity. I was playing with fire, big time.

"Where are you?" he asked.

"My apartment."

"Convenient."

"I-I…." I stammered, but Lester cut me off.

"Do you have any chocolate syrup?" he asked. I was unable to answer because of the mental picture that popped into my brain. Naked Santos and chocolate syrup. GAH! My silence must have given away my thoughts because he chuckled again. "I told you I could show you a few things with chocolate. I like to start at the bottom and work my way…"

"Ok!" I screeched. He laughed again.

"What do you want Stephanie?"

"I want….I want…." I stuttered. This was harder than I thought.

"Yes?" he asked, his voice a husky whisper in my ear.

I swallowed hard and willed the words to come out. "You to…." 

"Yeah beautiful?"

I shut my eyes. "Fuck me." The words came out as a whisper.

"See you in 10," he said and disconnected.

I held the phone in my hand and stared at it. What have I done? My heart was pounding and I broke out into a cold sweat. A part of me felt like I had just sealed a deal with the devil. My hand shook as I opened the car door and as I made my way up the steps to my apartment, my knees felt shaky. I fumbled with the keys to my apartment dropping them twice in the process, but I managed to get inside.

I leaned against the door and took a deep breath. I can do this. I wanted this. This was all about reaching out and taking what you want. For so many years I've played along with Ranger. Waiting for him to make up his mind about me, stuck in limbo. I was tired of waiting. Tired of wanting something that I could never have. With Morelli, he offered me everything that HE wanted without any thought as to what I really wanted.

For once I would just like for it to be all about me.

With Santos it would be.

I jumped as I heard a knock on my door. I was still leaning against it and I stepped away, attempted to calm my raging heart and took a deep breath. I opened the door.

Santos was leaned against the doorframe, his massive shoulders taking up most of the doorway. He was dressed as he had been a couple hours earlier in desert camouflage cargos, sans utility belt, tight black t-shirt and black Bates boots. My eyes met his delicious chocolate brown ones and took in his chiseled face. Hard, square jaw line, full lower lip and a dimple in his left cheek from the current lopsided grin he was wearing. His short dark hair was tosseled and a pair of black Oakley sunglasses rested on top of his head.

I stepped back and he pushed off the doorway and walked inside. I felt dwarfed beside him. Ranger is a big guy, and Morelli isn't a slouch either, but Santos had about three inches on them both. He crossed his arms across his chest, his biceps straining the t-shirt.

I licked my lips and swallowed hard. "Hi," I managed to squeak. He laughed a low chuckle, his shoulders shaking.

"Hi." His dark gaze stayed pinned on me, and I felt my pulse jump past the racing point. A few minutes ago this seemed like a great idea. Now with him standing before me in all his male glory, doubt started to creep in. He unfolded his arms and took a step towards me, jarring me into action. I shut the door and scooted around his bulk, making my way to the kitchen.

"Would you care for something to drink?" I called over my shoulder, my voice having taken on a nervous quiver. I pulled open the refrigerator, basking in the coolness radiating from it.

"No I'm good," I heard from directly behind me. I jumped, dropping the bottle of water in my hand. I turned to face him and he reached down to retrieve the bottle. Unscrewing the top, he handed it to me.

"Th-thanks," I stuttered.

"You're nervous. That's cute," he said with a grin.

I chugged half the water and stared at him. "It's not that…" I started. Lester stepped closer to me, causing me to forget whatever I was about to say. He took the bottle from me and set it on the counter. He grasped my hand lightly with his large warm one and pulled me away from the fridge, shutting it then pressing me against it.

His hard, hot body pressed against mine from hip to the floor. He braced his hands on either side of me. "Relax," he whispered, his lips a breath from mine. "I know just what you need," he promised just before his lips met mine. They were firm yet gentle, and I felt a bolt of heat shoot through me. He slid his hands down my arms and up my ribcage, smoothing the outer sides of my breast. His hands paused cupping my breasts, his thumbs tracing circles around my hardened nipples.

I moaned at the intense heat that was pooling between my thighs and Lester slid is tongue between my lips, lazily stroking mine. I felt a shiver slip up my spine as his hand edged under my shirt, tracing hot patterns against my skin, moving up to slip under my bra. My skin burned from his touch as he palmed my right breast, his tongue still mating with mine.

I smoothed my hands up his hard chest, feeling the chiseled muscles twitch under my exploring fingertips. He broke the kiss and gently nipped at my lower lip. My breath was coming in short gasps as he pulled away from me. He took a step back and grinned.

My gaze raked over his body, settling on the massive erection in his cargos. I swallowed and drug my gaze back up to his.

"Your move, gorgeous."

My skin still tingled from where he touched me. My breasts felt heavy and hot, not to mention the throbbing that was going on down below. I took a deep breath and decided to just go with it. I launched myself at him, wrapping my arms around his neck and hoisting my legs around his waist.

He caught me easily, with a chuckle. "I love a woman who knows what she wants," he laughed as his fingers dug into my ass cheeks. He kissed me hard then, stealing my breath. He walked toward my bedroom, kicking open the door. We collapsed onto the bed. Lester braced his weight on his forearms as we fell. I was still wrapped around him like a snake, attempting to get as close to him as possible. I'd never felt so out of control, so wonton. A wave of heat washed over me and I reached down, sliding my hands up his shirt, feeling the rippling muscles beneath my fingertips.

Lester went to his knees, my legs still wrapped around his waist and removed his shirt in one fluid motion, flinging it somewhere over his shoulder. My eyes soaked in the broad, bronzed expanse of chest before me. He was hard and cut, each muscle well defined. I licked my lips, my eyes meeting his. He reached down and tugged my shirt off before I had time to think about it. Moving down he kissed the valley between my breasts, nipping lightly on the flesh exposed by my demi-bra.

I groaned and arched up closer to him. He slid his hand around my back and with an expert flick of his wrist my bra sprung free. Sliding it over my arms he discarded it, his hot mouth moving down to cover my left breast. He sucked a portion of it up into his mouth, his tongue wreaking havoc on the nipple, his dark eyes locked with mine. I whimpered at the contraction between my legs and threaded my fingers into his hair, locking his head against me.

He released my breast and stroked his tongue across my stomach. His knees slid off the bed as he unfastened my jeans and tugged them down. He removed my socks, shoes and jeans quickly. Standing he looked down at me. I felt a flush of embarrassment settle on me under his gaze. Lying there in nothing but a tiny pink lace thong, I felt slightly inadequate compared to the Adonis before me.

"It's even better than I thought," he whispered, moving forward to tug my thong off. I lifted my hips and he drug the scrap of lace down and discarded it. He sank to his knees and grasped me behind mine. He hauled me toward the edge of the bed, and his mouth was on me.

"Oh God," I groaned as he tongue delved inside of me, causing another mini contraction to sweep through me. He grasped my hips, pulling them tighter against him, he moved up to suck on my swollen clit, causing a whole parade of sensations to shoot through me. I whimpered and cried out as he inserted a finger inside of me, moving it in a come here motion.

A wave crashed over me as the orgasm built, fire singed every nerve in my body as the first convulsions started. I cried out as it scorched through my body, causing me to buck against him.

My brain felt like mush as Lester began kissing up my stomach. He licked my collarbone and placed hot kisses on my jaw line to my ear. "That was just the beginning," he whispered. I gasped as I felt his cock, hard and throbbing against my thigh.

I ran my hand over his broad shoulders and dug my nails into his tight muscles. I arched against him, desperate for more. Sensing my urgency, Lester stood up beside the bed and shucked off his boots, cargos and boxers. His massive erection stood proudly from his body.

I guess what they said about him was true.

He was hung like a horse.

My eyes widened as I stared at his cock. "Wow," I gasped.

Lester grinned down at me. "You ain't seen nothing yet gorgeous," he chuckled. He slid his forearms under my thighs and pressed down, his cock seeking entrance. My ankles locked on his shoulders as he looked down at me. "Tell me what you want Stephanie." His dark eyes bored into mine, passion raging in their depths.

I gasped and attempted to calm my breathing. "I want you. All of you. Inside of me. Right now."

His only response was a crooked grin that sent my pulse into overdrive. With a swift thrust of his hips he was buried inside of me. The angle at which he entered me brought on a whole set of sensations I'd never experienced before. He filled me completely and totally, more so than I would have ever thought possible. The feeling was unbelievable. I cried out and squeezed his shoulders with my knees, clamping down upon him.

He groaned and withdrew, slamming into me again. He rocked his body against mine, causing the muscles in my legs to quiver. I looked up into his dark eyes, cloudy with passion. I leaned up and caught his mouth with mine, sucking his lower lip between my teeth. He groaned and answered with a quick thrust of his hips, causing me to gasp as he hit a deep place inside of me.

Taking advantage, he thrust his tongue inside of my mouth, dueling with my own. I whimpered against his lips at the rush of pleasure that was shooting through my veins. He caught my cry and increased his thrusts. The orgasm hit me hard, causing my hips to buck against his, my nails to dig into his strong, broad shoulders.

"Let go Steph," he said in a hoarse whisper. I did just that. Letting the orgasm carry me over the edge. I screamed as the contractions swept through me, leaving me weak and pliable. Lester withdrew his arms from under my legs and grasped me around the waist. He rolled over in one quick motion, pulling me astride. I whimpered as he thrust up inside of me, triggering another round of undulations.

He grasped my breasts, tweaking the nipples to the point of pain. I flung my head back, moving my hips in a circular motion, grinding down upon him. I clenched my inner muscles, clamping him tight.

"Oh shit, do that again beautiful," he rasped. I looked down at him, beads of persperation dotting his upper lip. I repeated the motion.

"Like that?" I breathed.

"Oh yeah," he said closing his eyes. "Harder beautiful. Fuck me harder."

His words sent shivers up my spine and I sat down on him hard, squeezing him tight, moving in small grinding circles. I wanted to please him the way he had just pleased me. I increased my speed until he was clutching my hips, his thrusts moving faster to match mine. He groaned deeply, his body rigid as his orgasm carried him over the edge.

I slid off of him and lay on my back, panting, attempting to calm my racing heart. I glanced over at Lester who didn't seem to be much better off than I was. He gave me his patented crooked grin. "Damn beautiful," he said with a laugh. He rolled off the bed and headed toward the bathroom. I lay there, sated and exhausted.

I heard the water in the bathroom turn on and I thought about what I had just done, and where in the hell that left me now. This wasn't something that I would ever normally do. I had to admit though, I felt good. Almost empowered. I chose to do this. For me. Lester returned from the bathroom a short time later. I watched as he strode across my bedroom stark naked, his strong, bronzed muscles rippling with every small movement.

He was a beautiful man.

I sat up on the bed, suddenly self-conscious. Lester tugged on his boxers and cargos. He glanced over at me and grinned. "I can defiantly see the attraction now," he said.

My brow furrowed. "What?"

"For Ranger. I can see why he's so attracted to you now. You're a damn wildcat in the sack." He laughed softly and sat down on the edge of the bed and tugged on his socks and boots.

"Thanks. I think," I said feeling a little unsure. I watched as he stood and picked up his shirt off the floor. I felt a little strange. In some way almost used. I hated casual sex, and this just seemed to have booty call written all over it. I brow beat myself. I'm the one who called him. I shouldn't be feeling guilty now. He seemed to have a lot more experience in this department so I glanced over at him. "So, you'll call me?"

Lester let out a short bark of laughter. "No. I'm good. Thanks."

I looked at him in utter shock. My mouth gaped open and I did my impression of a goldfish.

"Listen beautiful, let me rewind this for you since you didn't get it the first time. You are no diffeant than any of the hundreds of women I've fucked all across the world. Every ho-dunk town in America has a woman like you. Every shit hole bar in every out post. You may have Ranger and Morelli fooled, but you never fooled me sweetie."

"You son of a bitch! You just did this so you could throw this in Ranger's face!" I screamed.

He laughed a low laugh. "No, I did this so I could collect the money in the pot. I think we were up to 2500."

"It was a bet!"

He shrugged again. "It is what it is. The guys didn't think I could nail you since Ranger has been trying to get in your panties for God knows how long. You wouldn't give it up for him, but you damn sure gave it up for me." I watched as a cocky grin spread across his face.

In that moment I hated him.

"You're….you're just a fucking whore," I blurted out.

Lester threw back his head and laughed. "Takes on to know one, _babe._ Think about that." He strode across my bedroom. I reached over and grabbed the alarm clock beside my bed and flung it at him. I wanted to hurt him as bad as he had hurt me. The alarm clock clanged against the wall and hit the floor. Lester stopped and looked at me over his shoulder, still grinning.

"You've ruined everything!" I screeched at him. I knew in the pit of my stomach he would tell Ranger. I felt sick. What had I done? Ranger was everything to me, and I had screwed everything up just for a few moments of pleasure.

"You did that all on your own," he smirked. With that he walked out of my bedroom. I lay back on the bed, broken. I felt tears burn my eyes as I heard the front door shut. Ranger wouldn't tolerate this. He would cut me out of his life.

How could I live with that?

The sobs overtook me. The full devestation of what I had done hit me. Things would never be right again. I'd lost him forever. That wasn't the worst part.

The worst part was that I knew I had no one to blame but myself.


End file.
